From Gisborne to Melbourne.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume X, Issue 1078, 25 May 1882, Page 4

From Gisborne to Melbourne.

[Written for the Poverty Bay Standard.] No. VII. (Continued from our Last). A portion of the Reading-room, by the way, consists of a Reference Library, of which the public largely take advantage. Visitors enter their names in a b<»«»k ke?>t for that purpose, and have free access to the splendid collection of books and Colonial and Kniop<an journals. The library is a handsome apartment, warm in winter, and wtT. ventilated in summer, with comfortable reading chairs, and every writing requisite. As n the Melbourne Library, so in theC istchurch Library, it was refreshing, in the face of the prevailing larrikinism outside, to see a number of youths and young men, and even school boys diligently occupying their leisure hour, seated at the tables, daily, imbibing mental knowledge from books of an order not generally to be found even in the best appointed private libraries. While writing on educational accompaniments T cannot omit an expression of satisfaction T evinced at the DEMISE OF THE CHRISTCHURCH LIBERTY, As it was designated. The Liberty wwo miscalled Society paper—one of those pestiferous ulcers that for a time fattened on the offal of the Colony’s immorality. It is now defunct, ♦’•e reason being, I suppose, that it would not follow the more sensible example of its compeers in other towns, and modify its .tone to the taste of its better class of readers, so ,< ‘ society ” set its fare against its production, and it died a natural death. So much for Liberty of a ribald eass. Before taking a final leave of Christchurch I must relute one of the what is called “ TUB-THUMPING ” SCENES I saw in the street. “Tub-thumpers” are ironically «o called from their open-air preac - ing proclivities. The “Salvation Army’* is another nick-name for those who, with an ignorant and offensive display of biblical quotations, perambulated the streets on a Sunday evening, under the pretence of promoting religion, with a lot of arabs and hoodlums for audiences. On the occasion of winch I write. 1 had just come from evening •service at.tlie Cathedral when 1 confronted a large gathering of persons, under a lamp in •one of the triangular spaces which I hare already described. In the centre of this mob, for it proved to be nothing else, a “Tubthumper” stood, and was busily, and noisily engaged in denouncing, as it appeared, all the ■churches, from Ephesus downwards, and systems of religion that did not agree with liis •own, but what his own was I failed to discover, xis the sequel will show. While partly listening to this declaimer, I “ took stock ” of the personnel of his hearers, the majority of whom ■were lads and other “ once a week ” larrikins with pipes and cigars of mal-odorous effluvia in their mouths, joking and jeering the speaker 4Lt every sentence. There was also a sprinkling of young girls, who ought to have been with their parents ; and a few respectable-looking men. Amongst these latter was one whose ■subsequent conduct gave practical proof of the difficulty one experiences in detecting a gentleman by his dress. This person was clad as a .gentleman, but he did not so behave, for (after dhe preacher had run the gauntlet of a strong fire'of nbald epithets, such as would have made a less determined man pause,_yid had •challenged any of his hearers to t*® r .spro< f of his argument) he added fuel to the tfismally •blasphemous flame then raging by enquiring *** What the h—ll he (the speaker) knew about it.” This, of course, was a ‘ fine opportunity ’’ for the larrikins, who joined in the chorus of similar enquiry, accompanied by “ jokes ” that «*.«Mle one’s blood run cold. This was continued for some time, until the itinerant parson descended amid the coarsest of jibes. His place was, however, speedily filled by another, who •denounced both his predecessors on the rostrum, and their hearers. Similar retaliation for over ten minutes, when, no policeman having arrived to disperse the mob, I left •disgusted at the possibility of such scenes being permitted -in a Christian city, and on a 'Christian Sabbath night.